Spain's government has responded to pleas by the country's hotel and resort industry for a rescue after the collapse of the giant Thomas Cook holiday and airline business, offering loans, promotion and regulation relief.
Some 500 Spanish hotels, especially in the Balearics and Canaries, were hard-hit by the loss of package holidays sold by Cook. For many hotels, the issue appeared devastating, since over 100 depended entirely on Thomas Cook bookings, and many others were in for up to 70%.
The aid will take the form of a line of credit for hotels of about €200 million, ramped-up official tourism promotion efforts, and a cut in tariffs and fees for airlines flying to the two island groups, along with some other measures.
Even hotels that did not have a big Thomas Cook business are affected; Cook's airline was the primary or sole carrier to a number of Canaries destinations. A similar situation has affected some areas of Cuba, where TravelGumbo member GarryRF reports empty hotel spaces and other disruptions.
Photo: British government workers helping with return of stranded Thomas Cook vacationers
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